Ming Zuo

Chapter 823 Coal and Steel Complex

"There are two main difficulties at present. One is that the steel is not up to standard, and the cylinders made are not strong enough and are prone to damage; the other is that the chamber pressure cannot be tested, which leads to frequent burst accidents of steam engines."

The steam engine factory was newly built, and big bosses gathered. It was a rare opportunity. Qin Luo hurriedly reported the difficulties he encountered so far.

Both of the problems he mentioned were not to be underestimated, either of which hindered the perfection of the steam engine.

Zuo Menggeng thought about it carefully, but felt that the second question was easier to handle.

"If you want to measure the chamber pressure, you must have a more intuitive display method. Have you ever seen a thermometer and a clock? Can you use these two things to make a pressure gauge?"

Clocks and watches are very common in Shandong nowadays, but anyone with a little extra money will wear them.

After all, this thing is very convenient to see the time, which greatly helps life.

As for thermometers, they are nothing new.

Making a thermometer is not difficult as long as you have glass and mercury.

Zuo Menggeng once said something to Fuyao Glass, but the thermometer came out within half a month.

At this time, Qin Luo mentioned the problem of testing the chamber pressure of the steam engine, and Zuo Menggen thought of this.

The hands of clocks and watches can be used not only to display time, but also to display numerical values, and the principles are interlinked.

Clocks and watches are driven by the power of the mainspring to move the pointer, while the pressure gauge is just using the pressure of steam to push the pointer to point to different values.

He just said a little bit, and all the science and engineering experts around were greatly inspired.

"This thing is not difficult, and it will definitely be made after a few more experiments."

Jiang Wei took over this job,

As the boss of the industry, he will properly arrange this matter.

As for the problem that the cylinder is not strong enough, it involves the steel itself.

It seems simple, but it is also the most troublesome to solve.

Zuo Menggeng was very concerned about the progress of the steam engine, so he simply went to the Anshan Lake Industrial Zone for a field inspection to see if there was any way to improve the steel production process.

The current person in charge of Anshan Lake Iron and Steel Company is already the third generation.

The first generation of Yang Gui and others have already retreated behind the scenes, unable to keep up with the development situation.

The general manager of Anshan Lake Iron and Steel Company is Fang Daheng, who is the apprentice of Yang Gui's apprentice.Compared with Yang Gui's skill in making ironware, it is far behind by thousands of miles.

But there is one thing that Yang Gui can't match no matter what.

That is knowledge.

Fang Daheng was the first graduate of Zuozhuang Academy, and then returned to the furnace several times for further study, accurately mastering the relevant knowledge of iron and steel smelting.

If it was primitive ironmaking, he could only help Yang Gui.But in the field of industrialized steel smelting, he is an expert.

"How to increase steel production, we have been studying here, and Master Yu Wentai has some experience."

Fang Daheng didn't deliberately show off in front of Zuo Menggeng, but introduced the master who worked on the front line.

Yu Wentai is fifty years old and comes from Xuzhou.

Fleeing from famine to Shandong five years ago, he was recruited into a steel company because of his excellent blacksmithing skills.

Although he is not young, he works hard.The most important thing is to be diligent in brainstorming and solve many technical problems.

Where the results are, the level is also there, and no one has to be convinced.

As a newcomer, Yu Wentai has now become the deputy chief engineer of Anshanhu Iron and Steel Company, enjoying the treatment of a master craftsman.

Yu Wentai cherishes the good and stable life, and works harder to study his work.

He never felt old, and even learned to read and write, and went to attend classes.

Seeing him like this, the other workers followed suit and made great progress.

As a person who likes to ponder, Yu Wentai really has a lot of ideas.

"The current smelting technology has reached its limit in terms of output and quality. To improve, new furnaces and higher temperatures are necessary."

The smelting furnace used by the steel company today is still the idea proposed by Zuo Menggeng.

That is graphite crucible.

But this kind of smelting furnace can only withstand a temperature of [-] degrees at most. If it is higher, the furnace will definitely be burned out.

Graphite crucibles are sufficient for producing glass, but not enough for smelting steel with a higher melting point.

"Do you have any clues?"

Zuo Menggeng was more concerned about this.

He didn't have any hope at first, but he didn't expect that Yu Wentai gave him a big surprise.

"We've been looking for new materials, experimenting back and forth for several years, and found that refractory bricks fired with alumina and clay can withstand higher temperatures than graphite."

Zuo Menggeng was very excited.

"How much can it reach?"

Fang Daheng said: "We tested it once, and it can reach more than [-]."

Hearing that such a high temperature can be reached, Zuo Menggeng was impatient.

"Then why didn't you mount your horse?"

Fang Daheng smiled wryly.

"Although the new refractory bricks can withstand higher temperatures, we have no way to heat the furnace to such a high temperature. It is easy to do the experiment, but for mass production, there are still many processes that need to be improved."

The amount of steel output will determine how big the business can be.

Zuo Menggeng is more concerned about this kind of thing than the army.

"It just so happened that I came today. If there are any problems, let's talk about them all. I will help you coordinate and strive for a one-time solution."

Hearing him say that, everyone was excited.

Another engineer, Xiong Zhoushi, said hastily: "Actually, we have already figured out how to increase the furnace temperature, that is, to build a regenerator first. When refining coke, the gas produced can be sent into the regenerator for storage. If steel is to be smelted, the gas should be sent to the smelting furnace, which should be able to reach the required temperature."

The understanding of gas is now very common in Shandong.

After all, if coke is smelted, this thing will be produced.

At first people thought it was exhaust gas and didn't care.

But after several violent explosions occurred in succession, people discovered that this gas could burn violently.

Then began the collection of gas, and widely used.

Zuo Menggeng knew that there must be some problems.

"What's the problem?"

Xiong Zhoushi is responsible for this aspect of the work.

"How to collect gas, we have already mastered the technology. However, the steel that has been smelted several times in a row is very brittle and easy to break, and there is no way to cast guns. We thought it was a problem with the iron material, but using the original The quality of the method is acceptable. Then the problem must be the gas. But we don’t know much about this thing, how to make gas that meets the requirements?”

Zuo Menggeng understood.

How to refine steel with gas is an industrial problem.

But the different results from gas, it's a matter of chemistry.

These engineers in front of us can solve industrial problems, but they cannot solve chemical problems.

Experts are needed in this area.

"Where is Chen Shuangjin? Tell him to come over immediately."

(End of this chapter)